Mumbai Combined Arms Operation November 26, 2008 (Report Current as of November 28) The contents of this (U) presentation in no way represent the policies, views, or attitudes of the United States Department of State, or the United States Government, except as otherwise noted (e.g., travel advisories, public statements). The presentation was compiled from various open sources and (U) embassy reporting.
The Attack At least125 Dead Over 325 injured CST Station Taj Hotel Oberoi/Trident Cama Hospital Café Leopold Nariman House (Jewish Center) Other reports Movie theater, police station, taxi cab explosions
Tactics Entering City Badhwar Park At least one large ship entered Mumbai waters Inflatable rafts carried teams to India Gateway and/or Badhwar Park at 9 p.m. local 2-, 3-, and 4- man teams split off Why amphibious entry? Infamous Mumbai traffic could cause delays Indian train stations heavily monitored Could have possibly come directly from abroad India Gateway (note Taj in background)
Tactics Continued Tactic 1: Hit and run Tactic 2: Seize and hold Terrorists quickly attacked with AK-47s, grenades Aimed at large groups Retreated from security, moved on to other targets Used at Cama hospital, CST, and Café Leopold Terrorists gained entry and immediately started indiscriminate firing Hostages taken Used knowledge of facility layout to advantage Established strong-points to defend against security Used at Oberoi/Trident, Taj, Nariman House
Tactics Hit and Run Indiscriminate firing and grenade lobbing Main hall of the CST terminal targeted (pictured) Terrorist team at CST retreated from security response Continued on to hit Cama Hospital as a drive-by as police pursued "All of a sudden, there was automatic gunfire. The whole place fell apart. It was tremendously loud. My husband and I were hit, as were lots of people. Everybody was down on the ground. The gunfire stopped for a few seconds then started t again. We had to wait it seemed like an age for police to arrive." Café Leopold survivor
Tactics Seize and Hold Image of attacker from CST Attackers entered lobby and shot indiscriminately AK47 s, grenades, reports of presence of frdx Rounded up hostages to take to defensible locations Some roamed halls, looking for victims Room-to-room battles with security forces Police: Attackers very familiar with layout
Tactics - Analysis This style of frontal attack and assault combined with hostage taking is not new See Munich Olympics attack 1973 Soft targeting not new Innovative amphibious infiltration ti Substantial knowledge of locations suggests detailed preparation and familiarity it
Targets Anti-Western Five-star hotels that cater to international businesses (Taj, Oberoi/Trident) Popular restaurant for backpackers and Western travelers (Café Leopold) Jewish community compound Crowded transportation terminals UK AND US PASSPORT HOLDERS TARGETED FOR U US SS O O S G O HOSTAGE TAKING!!!!!
Suspects Hyderabad d Deccan Muhjahideen hid claimed attack Reportedly gunmen spoke with Indian TV via captured cell phone claiming to be Indian national(s) acting in defense of Indian Muslims Hindi-language email claiming attack had similar aims Previously unknown, may be front group Lashkar-e-Tayyiba denied involvement Used similar tactics when aiding Jaish-e-Mohammed in the Dec. 2001 Indian parliament attack (mixed small arms and explosives for assault) Indian Mujahideen recently claimed IED attacks in New Delhi, Bangalore, Ahmedabad Modus Operandi very different (coordinated IEDs) English-language language emails claimed previous attacks
Suspects - Details Police reported finding Mauritius ID(s) in captured belongings All appeared to be young men in their 20 s and 30 s Some reports suggested that the attackers were of Pakistani or British descent Indian Press often tends to point to Pakistanis after terror attacks
Suspects - Analysis The name of the group and their reported goals suggest this is a home-grown Indian terrorist group However, extensive training, planning, and support suggest outside coaching and involvement Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (linked to al-qa ida and Pakistani terror groups) has history of acting as a force multiplier for other groups Offers training, money, supplies, etc. for front groups Targeting of Westerners, Jews, and economic sites suggests some sort of linkage to worldwide Islamist militancy
Government Response Police blocked all roads and prevented travelers from leaving airports Surrounded the Taj Hotel, the Oberoi/Trident, and the Nariman house Army brought in to clear the hotels/houses room-by-room, floor-by-floor Cautious approach taken due to fear of injuring hostages, many people hiding in rooms. Security elevated nationwide, including at tourist sites, transportation hubs, beaches, etc. U.S. Government: Americans should defer travel to Mumbai for at least 48-72 hours
Private Sector Response U.S. Hotel Response Locked down properties in Mumbai Physically blocked vehicle entrances in order to intercept all taxis, delivery trucks, and public vehicles Security managers had employees shelter in place and inspected properties for possible latent threats Most U.S. hotels have put their assets throughout India on high security alert and implemented similar security postures as in Mumbai Other U.S. private sector response Followed similar security plans Most have shut down facilities in Mumbai until the situation stabilizes Some constituents with large expatriate populations implemented mandatory check-in times for employees to call headquarters At least one OSAC constituent ordered employees to evacuate Mumbai and move into residential areas outside the city
Recent Major Terror Attacks in India March 13, 2003 - A bomb attack on a commuter train in Mumbai killed 11 people; Mumbai commuter train bomb killed 11 Aug. 25, 2003 - Mumbai car bomb killed 60 Oct. 29, 2005 - Three New Delhi market blasts killed 66 March 7, 2006 - Three blasts in Varanasi killed 15 July 11, 2006-180+ people killed after seven bombs exploded in railway stations and trains in Mumbai Sept. 8, 2006-32 people killed in serial blasts in Malegaon Feb. 19, 2007-66 train passengers killed after two bombs exploded on a route between India and Pakistan May 18, 2007-11 worshippers at a mosque killed by a bomb explosion in Hyderabad Aug. 25, 2007 - Three serial blasts at a road-side stand and amusement park killed 40 in Hyderabad. May 13, 2008 - Seven bombs in Jaipur, outside of Hindu temples and markets killed 63 July 25, 2008 - One killed and 15 wounded after eight small bombs exploded in Bangalore July 26, 2008-45 people killed and more than 150 wounded after 16 small IEDs exploded in Ahmedabad. Sept. 13, 2008 - Five bombs in New Delhi killed 18
All India OSAC Country Council Meeting 13th Annual General Meeting of the India Country Council December 8, 2008 in New Delhi Log-on to www.osac.gov for more information on time and place and to register Topics to be discussed include: International terror trends Security situation ti update Document fraud trends Corporate security
Benchmarking Survey Please consider filling out the following survey on the impact of this week's attacks on the private sector. Answers to these questions regarding private sector response to the incident will then be turned into a report for the OSAC constituency. To view the survey, please login with your username and password after clicking on the following URL. https://www.osac.gov/survey/index.cfm?surveyid=1411
For Further Information Reports: Overseas Security Advisory Council Marc Solomon Regional Coordinator: South Central Asia SolomonMB@state.gov 571-345-2235 BOMB BLASTS IN BANGALORE INDIA TRAVEL ALERT WARDEN MESSAGE: TERROR ATTACKS IN MUMBAI WARDEN MESSAGE: NEW DELHI EXPLOSIONS WARDEN MESSAGE: BOMBS TARGET AHMEDABAD WARDEN MESSAGE: BOMBINGS IN BANGALORE WARDEN MESSAGE: EASTERN INDIA STRIKES CALLED WARDEN MESSAGE: MUMBAI OFFERS MONSOON SAFETY INFORMATION INDIA 2008 CRIME & SAFETY REPORT: MUMBAI (view in slide show format to utilize hyperlinks)